


Silver Bells

by morphogenesis, zecretsantamods



Category: Zero Escape (Video Games), Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma - Fandom
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-21
Updated: 2016-12-21
Packaged: 2018-09-08 02:41:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8827210
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/morphogenesis/pseuds/morphogenesis, https://archiveofourown.org/users/zecretsantamods/pseuds/zecretsantamods
Summary: Charged with caring for a time-displaced Quark, Junpei and Akane try to grant his impossible Christmas wish. (Post-ZTD, series spoilers apply.)





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [morphogenetlc](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=morphogenetlc).



_Dear Santa,_  
  
Grandpa always told me not to expect anything to be handed to me, so I’m not sure what it’s okay to ask for. Uncle Junpei and Aunt Akane said you could do anything though, so I hope it’s okay if I ask for something big.

_  
All I want is to talk to Grandpa again._ _I want him to know I really like it here and I’m okay. Can you tell him that? And please ask him to write to me. I put an envelope in here so he can send it back with you._

__  
Thank you very much,  
  
_Quark_

  
Junpei sighed and reread the letter, but it didn’t get any easier to swallow. “Why couldn’t he just ask for a video game?” he muttered. The way Aoi and Akane described their “letter to Santa” tradition sounded so innocent, but then again they hadn’t been kids from an apocalyptic future. They’d always known about toys and candy and books and animals, and the guarantee that tomorrow they wouldn’t have to dig through ruins to find everything they needed.

  
When Quark had first started to feel comfortable outside, Junpei and Akane took him grocery shopping. It was something fast and easy, and they took him on a weekday mid-morning when there wouldn’t be any parents hurrying to grab dinner fixings, old people fighting with cashiers to accept their expired coupons, and rowdy teenagers clogging aisles. After hearing they’d buy him anything he wanted, he grabbed a bottle of root beer from the fridge by the checkout line and said this was fine. Junpei’d had to nudge Quark to walk around the store with him to “just look” at other items, and Quark was in awe that so much fresh produce and meat, including stuff he’d never had in his life, was just sitting there in great pyramids and stuffed drawers. They filled the cart with mismatched oddities like pomegranates, seafood mix, purple potatoes, chicken liver, and kiwi before Junpei and Akane dragged him to the junk food on principle.

  
When they made it to the frozen aisle, he’d gone “Whoa!” and walked up and down the ice cream row a dozen times before finally grabbing a pint of vanilla and holding it up sheepishly. “Please?”

  
Akane’d chuckled. “Get a bigger one. We’ll make root beer floats.”

  
Quark’s eyes widened but he listened. That trip was one of the first signs that maybe Quark wasn’t going to be “normal” right away, but this letter was the thing that made Junpei’s chest burn, because he had no way to explain to Quark this was impossible.

  
When Quark came out of the transporter they’d acquired after years of searching, he’d been confused and then uncomfortable when he realized “Grandpa” wasn’t with him. Junpei’d froze, while Phi and Sigma just knelt down and re-introduced themselves. “Oh! Hey Miss Phi!” he’d said excitedly, and she’d smiled at him and said the guy beside her really was Mr. Sigma. Junpei was really, really glad he’d listened to them when they said having someone Quark recognized would make things easier. He wasn’t sure how to explain his identity at the time, so he just…hadn’t. He and Akane became “Grandpa’s relatives” and called themselves Quark’s Uncle and Aunt instead.

  
All he’d arrived with was a note tucked in his pocket from his Grandpa, explaining who he was and why he’d sent Quark back. _Show him how good life can be_ , he’d written, like it was easy. Like Quark would never miss what he’d grown up with.

  
Junpei jumped when someone grabbed him from behind, and his assailant pulled him closer, giggling, and pressed her face between her shoulder blades. “Just me.“

  
“You know I hate that,” he grumbled, but turned to face Akane, grabbed her face, and planted a messy kiss on her lips to get her back. While he was distracted, she plucked the letter from between his fingers and stepped back. “Hey! I’m Santa, remember?”

  
She practically danced out of his grasp, reading it despite his struggle to take it from her, and her face softened as she reached the end. “Aw, Quark…”

  
“…Yeah. I thought he’d just want more ice cream or something.” He scratched the back of his head. “How am I supposed to do this?” he murmured so he wouldn’t wake Quark in the other room. He was Junpei Tenmyouji, 26 year-old newlywed in over his head; he wasn’t Junpei Tenmyouji, 67 year-old grandfather.

  
“Well, one time when I was nine I wrote to Santa and asked him to prove he was real.”

  
“Why?” He shook his head. “No, wait, you would do that.”

  
Akane puffed out her cheeks. “I wanted to tell Ishinomori he was wrong about Santa not being real! Santa even wrote me back!”

  
“That must’ve been Aoi.”

  
Akane smiled and tilted her head, one finger to her chin. “Exactly.”

  
Junpei tried to set the idea aside for a while, thinking maybe Quark would forget about his request if they kept him distracted with all manner of fun and gifts the day-of, but the thought nagged at him until it came out in bed one night.

  
“I mean, we got him the bike, right? He wants to learn! That’s probably gonna make up for it.” He flinched as the beer he’d been gesturing with splashed onto his face. Akane snorted at his predicament and handed him a tissue from her nightstand.

  
“Junpei…” she sighed, but kissed his cheek. “He doesn’t want a perfect letter or a bike. He wants Grandpa.”

  
“Well how do I pretend to be him? I only know a little bit of what his life was like!” He’d tried to use the morphic fieldset to learn more, but sometime around the hundredth vision of fire, dead bodies, and the disappointment and numbness that’d set in after finding Akane on the moon, he’d had enough and didn’t look again. He set the beer on his nightstand and propped himself up on his elbow to face Akane, looking at her in the soft glow of their bedside lamp.

  
When he’d slipped the ring on her finger the first time, in that doomed history, his only thoughts had been _Don’t let me pass out_ and _Please say yes_ and _I hope Carlos isn’t staring at us_. The second time, in the first motel room they’d crashed in after leaving Dcom, he’d knelt down on a grody carpet and put the ring on her left hand and given her the biggest, dorkiest grin he ever had in his life when she knocked him into the floor with the weight of her embrace. Then, he’d thought the best parts of marriage would be when they were happiest and declaring their love for each other. He learned the best parts were pinch-fights on the couch in headquarters, helping her out of her wedding gown when she got the flu at their reception and cleaning her running makeup off her face as she cried that she just wanted to enjoy her day, and lying next to her in bed savoring the fact that she was here.

  
She realized he was staring, and looked up from her book. “Do I have lotion on my face?”

  
“No, you just…” He met her eyes and she looked at him with growing confusion, before his hand darted out and pinched her cheek. “Gotcha.”

  
“Junpei!” She shook him off and tossed her book off the bed as she grabbed him and flipped them over so she was on top of him. “You’re gonna regret that,” she laughed as she pulled on his hair, and he slipped a hand under her shirt to pinch her stomach, making her shriek. They wrestled until they were out of breath, and ended up with her draped over him, kissing a line from his ear to his neck. He held her close as it dawned on him:

  
She was right. It didn’t have to be perfect to make them happy.

*****

“It’s all for me?” Quark, convinced to take his precious hat off after Akane told him it was a rule before he opened his gifts, rubbed the back of his head. He looked again at the gifts around him: the bike, the stocking full of candy, the new coat and boots, the books, and the video game system Junpei had wanted for himself but had told Akane was for Quark. “You guys are really nice…”  
  
“On Christmas, Santa grants wishes, okay? You’re a really good boy, so Santa told us you deserved it all.” Akane ruffled his hair and smiled when he shook his head. “Open up your presents from Phi and Sigma and Aoi while Uncle Junpei and I get the cocoa, okay?”  
  
“Okay!”  
  
Akane pulled him to the kitchen by the arm. As they left Aoi gave them a look that read _Don’t leave me alone with him_ , but Junpei suspected he was growing a soft spot for Quark as he’d sent a “follow-up letter from Santa” asking Quark if he preferred toy cars or an ice cream maker.

  
“Do you think he likes it?” Junpei whispered to her as she poured cocoa into mugs.  
  
“He seems happy, but I wish we’d written the letter.” She sighed. “His smile looks a little sad.”  
  
“That’s an oxymoron.”  
  
“You know what I mean.” He did. That Quark was afraid to look sad that he hadn’t gotten what he really wanted. Junpei pulled an envelope out of his pants pocket, carefully hidden until now.  
  
“Who’s to say Santa didn’t grant his wish?”  
  
She covered her mouth and her eyes watered a little. “Junpei…”  
  
“What?”  
  
She kissed his cheek and smiled at him, unable to explain why she was so touched. They returned to the living room, where Quark was enthusing about the ice cream maker and asking Aoi if kiwi-flavored ice cream was possible, and Junpei cleared his throat to get his attention. “I held onto this until the last gift was open…” With a flourish, he revealed the letter he’d been hiding behind his back. “Santa left this with me. He said you’re the only one allowed to open it.”  
  
Quark’s hands shook as he read it front-to-back. Junpei’d thrown four other drafts away before settling on this one, and he hoped he’d gotten the voice right. When Quark finished, he turned it back over and reread it. Finally he looked up at Junpei, swallowing. “Santa read my letter,” was all he got out. Akane distracted him with the cocoa, changing the topic fluidly by telling Aoi they had to try and make red bean ice cream sometime, and Quark seemed to perk up.  
  
Junpei sat next to him on the floor and nudged his shoulder into Quark’s, and they smiled at each other weakly. He hoped he’d gotten it right, and Quark wasn’t upset because he’d figured out the letter was fake:  
  
_Quark,_  
  
_I’m glad you’re alright. It sounds like you’re happy over there. That’s what I wanted for you. I hope you’ll understand that someday. I tried to get Santa to help me search for rare metal, but he’s not you. I’ll be fine here, you just worry about being polite to Junpei and Akane and working hard when you go to school._  
  
He went on, building up some story about a recent excavation Grandpa had gone on, and finished with: _Say hi to Phi and Sigma for me. I’ll send another letter with Santa next year._  
  
_Grandpa_  
  
_P.S. Tell Santa to bring scotch next time._  
  
Quark seemed cheery the rest of the day as they went to the movies, had breakfast for dinner at his request, and played a video game (something he still found fascinating no matter how many times he saw one). He waved goodbye to Aoi pleasantly and fell asleep on the couch past his bedtime. Junpei and Akane, after carrying him to his bed, looked around at the mess of wrapping paper and dishes, and shrugged before retiring to their own room.  
  
Junpei woke past midnight to the sound of shuffling around in the living room. He froze, listening, and there it was again: someone out there. He crept out, old instincts kicking in to protect himself, before he heard glass break and a quiet “Crap!”  
  
“Quark?” He found Quark kneeling by the tree, carefully sweeping shards of a broken ornament into a pile with his hands. “Forget that, we have a broom,” he muttered, pulling him up by the arm.  
  
“I’m sorry! I’ll fix it, I–”  
  
“Quark, it’s fine. It’s just an accident. What are you doing up this late?” Quark looked down at his feet. “Quark?”  
  
“I was trying to find something.”  
  
“What?”  
  
“I left a present for Grandpa, but Santa didn’t pick it up. I guess I hid it too well.” Quark shifted on his feet before bending down to grab an object he must’ve pulled from its hiding place. “Grandpa never wanted Christmas presents. We didn’t even do anything for it, but sometimes he’d give me things. He gave me my hat.” He handed it off to Junpei, a gift that was heavy and sloshing inside. It was wrapped in several layers of tissue paper and tape Quark must’ve taken when Akane was wrapping her gift for Aoi the other day. Junpei peeled back some of the paper and saw amber liquid.  
  
“Uh…what is this?”  
  
“Scotch.”  
  
“How the hell did you get scotch!?” Junpei said louder than he’d meant, and Quark jumped.  
  
“…Uh, Miss Phi helped me get it if I promised I wouldn’t tell.”  
  
“Of all the…what goes through her…forget it, I’ll talk to her later.” Junpei felt so old, lecturing a kid in his care about hiding alcohol.  
  
“It’s Grandpa’s favorite, and everything is so cheap here compared to where we come from. I wanted him to have something nice.” Quark looked askance. “And Miss Phi wouldn’t help me get ‘Grandpa videos.’”  
  
Junpei wasn’t gonna ask. He gripped the bottle instead and looked at Quark. “We can hold onto this for Grandpa. You don’t have to hide stuff from me and Akane.”  
  
Quark’s shoulders slumped. “Sorry… I thought you guys would tell Santa and then Grandpa wouldn’t be surprised.”  
  
“Well… I’ll put this away and we’ll forget about it. But just don’t keep secrets again, okay? Grandpa wouldn’t be happy if he knew.” They cleaned up the glass and he sent Quark back to bed, then sat on the couch and started drinking the scotch himself. Drinking alone in a dark room, ‘tis the season. He hadn’t had a holiday this depressing since the Christmas right after the Nonary Game, which he’d celebrated by joining that detective firm and almost getting stabbed on his first case.  
  
He must’ve dozed off, because he jolted awake when Akane settled beside him on the couch. The sun was just starting to rise and made the room rosy. She eased him onto his side and lay down on him, her head on his chest. “Sleep well?”  
  
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to uh. Do that.”  
  
“The bed got cold,” she murmured, spreading out on top of him. “I don’t like sleeping alone.” She snuggled against him. “So I’ll stay right here.”  
  
“Sounds good.” He put a hand on her head and stroked her hair. She was so warm and he held her closer, savoring her proximity and weight on top of him. There was a lot he could say—he loved her, Merry Christmas—but he didn’t say anything. Nothing could encapsulate how peaceful and lucky he felt right now. He didn’t have any easy answers for the next few months, but that was fine. He had Akane and Quark and they had him and together they’d see a lot of Christmases to come.


End file.
